Hello unique learners!
This is Yvette from Right Away and you are listening to a meditation about reducing procrastination.
This is already the third session of the reduced procrastination series.
Last time we made reality checks about our procrastinating thoughts.
In this series we will discover what your procrastination is all about,
What it serves and what strategies might help you.
For this session it might be useful to have pen and paper at hand as we answer self-inquiry questions.
So let's get started.
Get comfortable,
Preferably sitting straight and if you haven't done so already close your eyes if you like.
Feel your feet touching the ground.
Give them a rub on the ground.
Notice your body and try to take a deep breath in through the nose.
Hold it and breathe out slowly through the mouth.
And the key is to focus on those moments between the in and the out breath.
The silence there.
Now breathe in through the nose,
Hold it and breathe out more slowly.
One more big breath in through the nose,
Hold it and you can make a dramatic sight outwards.
How does that feel?
What emotions are you feeling?
Sadness?
Anger?
Fear?
Happiness?
Label them but don't dwell in them.
And now place your right arm if you like on your left arm and put your left arm on your right and give yourself a cuddle.
And now I would like to continue with another strategy and that is to identify your own most commonly used excuses and self-deceptions and try to make a list of them and get practiced at spotting them.
Because last time we had a very very popular one.
I will do it tomorrow.
Can you think of any more?
So once you have done this we can continue to our next strategy and that is make use of well-formed implementation intention.
An implementation intention is what moves a goal intention into action.
An effective format might be if then that is we get very clear about what very specifically we will do when a particular situation occurs.
So with an unhelpful thought,
A distraction.
And now we will make a pre-decision about how we will deal with possible challenges.
So if again it comes like if that happens then I will for example if my mind tells me I'll feel more like doing it tomorrow then I will just get started on some small aspect of the task anyway.
In other words just get started.
Can you think of another one?
And when you finally get started be aware the feel good feelings when you just get started can lull you into more easily giving into distractions and this feel good can make us overly optimistic about how much work remains and how quickly we can do it.
How much we have done compared to the task as a whole etc.
We can also kid ourselves into believing that we need the reward of distraction for having gotten started in the first place.
Arm yourself against this.
So be aware.
So what can help with this is another strategy is thinking about your goals in very concrete specific ways.
Because thinking abstractly about our goals leads us to believe that they are not really that urgent.
The more concrete your thoughts and plans the more easily they will lead to timely action.
So break your task down into smaller steps.
Make a list of the subtasks involved in a bigger task and make order of priority.
And do one step at a time.
And then comes the most difficult part.
Because we need to remain vigilant to procrastination thoughts and feelings even once you have gotten started.
It can be easy to avoid the feeling of discomfort that comes with feeling stuck.
Meaning there is something we don't understand or don't know and we try but we then eventually give in to distraction.
We have to be prepared for changes in our mood related to setbacks and disappointments.
We have to be prepared to overcome obstacles and for each potential distraction,
Obstacle or setback we can either identify it and how we can remove it.
For example turn off your phone,
Your email or we can go back to that implementation intention setting of the distraction.
For example if any friends invite me out this weekend then I will immediately say thanks but no I am committed to finishing my work.
This is by the way just one example.
Because research shows that participants who formed temptation inhibiting implementation intentions outperformed the groups who did not.
This effect was independent of the participants' motivations to achieve their goal and ignore distractions.
So what I would like you to do with this strategy is now imagine that vigilant power within yourself.
That intuition that you deeply down know what is right for you and that you can make healthy decisions when it comes to procrastination.
Try to feel your body,
How is it feeling?
And when these procrastinating thoughts arise try to focus on your breath.
And whatever position you are in try to sit or lay down straight with a spine that is straight,
Make your power pose and find that inner strength.
Now imagine a white purple light on the top of your head going into the scalp clearing all those procrastinating thoughts,
Healing them for now and that light goes downwards in your body.
And it stops at your heart space,
The light is intensifying right there,
It might feel a little bit warm.
Breathe in through it and enjoy this moment.
And now slowly returning back into the room,
Being present.
So yes,
Unique learner,
This meditation has come to an end and I wish you well and would like to thank you for listening and participating.
Namaste.
